Level 1: Individual Skills Competition
This competition allows Special Olympics athletes to develop sports skills in a competitive format designed to serve as a stepping stone towards course play. The individual skills offered for golf are short and long putt, chip shot, pitch shot, iron shot and wood shot.

Level 2: Alternate Shot Team Play (9 hole)
This competition allows Special Olympics athletes to compete in course play with a partner that acts as a coach to the athlete. The partner teaches strategy along with golf etiquette, preparing the athlete for individual course play.

Level 3: Alternate Shot Unified Sports Team Play (18 hole)
This competition allows Special Olympics athletes with a strong concept of golf rules and etiquette to play with a Unified Partner of similar ability on an alternate shot team for 18 holes.

Level 4: Individual Stroke Play Competition (9 hole)
This competition allows those athletes who have improved golf skills from level 2 to compete as an individual for 9-holes. Athletes are allowed caddies to help advise on strategy.

Level 5: Individual Stroke Play Competition (18 hole)
This is the highest individual level of golf offered by Special Olympics, and is for athletes with a good understanding of the game and golf knowledge. Athletes must shoot under a 120 at an SONC qualifier in order to be eligible for this level.

SONC has been working with the Carolina Golf Association and is now officially an affiliate club named the Special Olympics North Carolina Golf Club. Golfers competing at Level 4 and Level 5 only are required to have their coach enter their scores into the CGA GHIN system. Below you will find resources to make posting scores, and reviewing scores easier.

About Golf: Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing golfers use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes. The game is played on golf “courses”, each of which features a unique design, although courses typically consist of either nine or 18 holes. After a clinic at the 1993 Summer Games in Greensboro, SONC offered golf as an official sport for the first time at the Fall Games in Charlotte.

Differences of Special OlympicsGolf: Special Olympics offers varying events for competition, but in individual stroke play competitions, there are a couple of variations from the rules of golf. First, if a 10th stroke is played without holing the shot, the player shall record a score of “10x” and proceed to the next hole. In the place of a tie for first place, the winner can be decided by the number of “10x” scores on an athlete’s scorecard. The player with the fewest number of “10x” scores shall be declared the winner.

History: Golf became an official sport at Special Olympics North Carolina at the 1993 Fall Games following a clinic at Summer Games in Greensboro.

By the Numbers:

In 1991, golf made its exhibition debut at the International Games in Minneapolis, MN.

Sport Development Teams (SDT) are responsible for assisting with local and state-level programs and competition, educating coaches and officials, and promoting active engagement among athletes throughout the year. Click here for more information.

Certified Clinicians receive additional training in presentational skills to conduct training schools in their community. In order to become a Certified Clinician one must have a Special Olympics North Carolina level 2 sport certification in this sport.

For more information on becoming an SDT member or a Certified Clinician, contact sports@sonc.net.